THE NIGHT BEFORE THE WAR
THE NIGHT BEFORE THE WAR
Chapter 164
THIRD PERSON POV:
The air in the brimstone coven was solemn, thick with anxiety, fear, constant worry about the dangers that were to follow in the days to come.
A mirage of quietness, false peace but everyone knew what was heading their way, or at least what they would be heading into.
Claudia took a little stroll around the coven, watching as the once bustling village had been reduced to a land of sorrow, children no longer played outside, parents feared for their lives.
Businesses had closed down.
Claudia could see the pain and loss in their eyes and her heart twisted with guilt, none of this would have helped if it wasn't for her.
She shook her head of those thoughts as she was done blaming herself, what she needed to do next was act rather than reminisce.
She picked up the pace and arrived at the house where they all stayed. And by all, this included the twins, Melinda and Melissa.
Her mother, Lyra.
Warren and his mother Celeste, as well as Keto.
They all decided to stay together, or at least this was Claudia's suggestion because she wanted to see all of them one last time.
A sense of longing and to feel a certain closure that she may never get to feel again. These were some of the most important people that had entered her life.
They were of help to her along a journey she never knew she would take.
The second she walked through the door, all conversations halted, all eyes trailed towards her. She could feel the tension in the air and realised everyone in the room had lost one person or the other.
Warren had also returned as well and stood by the window, gazing outward.
Claudia walked over to the adjoining kitchen where her mother stood.
Lyra fussed over her daughter as she hadn't seen her in a while, pulling her into a deep hug, while barraging a shit load of questions her way, “Where have you been?”
“Have you eaten? You look a little skinny, my baby,”
Claudia could tell that her mother was this close to losing her mind, and to be honest, who could blame her. She had lost her mate at a very early stage in their relationship.
Lost the child she had for him for the past nineteen years, locked up alone on Jacob's watch and only managed to escape.
She learns the truth of her family and how her uncle had sentenced them to death because of his greed, yes she found her mate but now he was a mutated monster and the only plan of getting him work was a tweaked spell from her evil captor.
Claudia had just returned from where she had no clue and so yes, her actions were justified and she held her daughter like she was about to lose her.
Maybe she was right, Claudia thought as she calmed her mother down and assured her she was fine, with a smile of contempt on her face.
Only then did her mother calm down but she didn't let Claudia go until she herself was okay.
They all stayed with their loved ones for the night in silence, stayed with their family, because in a few hours, nothing would remain the same.
Claudia used this opportunity to thank her mother for all she had done, “For so long I have hated you, despised you for abandoning me without knowing the truth, if I did perhaps living would have been easier,” she shrugged in her mother's arms on the bed.
“It's alright dear, you had every right to hate me and your father, we brought you into this world and yet couldn't protect you,”
Lyra had beat herself up every day for the past twenty years, berating herself for not being able to protect her child. Her regrets piled up and she wondered most days if she had remained with her family perhaps they would have offered help to protect Claudia.
“It's not your fault,” Claudia assured.
Claudia clutched tight to her mother, holding her closer than possible imagined and Lyra didn't mind. She had missed the little moments.
She had missed almost every stage of her daughter's growth, her first words, her first steps, everything, and her heart couldn't settle, and now that she has her baby in her hands, she also didn't want to let go.
She relished these moments and wanted to spend every waking moment with her. It would have been a wholesome moment if her mate was with them as well.
“You know, Claudia wasn't the name we had in mind when your father and I left the pack,” Lyra began, reminiscing of the little joyful seconds of her life.
Claudia's interest piqued, “What was it?”
“Well, it was more of a debate, if we had a boy, we were going to name him, Alder,” one could see the light in her eyes.
“And if it was a girl??”
Lyra gently pushed away from her daughter a few inches, just to get a better look at her, a soft smile crept along the sides of her lips, “We would name her Aylin,”
Her smile reached her eyes, “It means, blessing of the moon,”
She could picture her mates face as they gazed into each other's eyes, planning a future as a family, yet all of that was wiped away in the blink of an eye.
Claudia tested the name on her lips, “Aylin,” smiling as she loved the name herself, thinking out loud, “It would be quite difficult to get use to,”
The smile on Lyra's face couldn't have gotten any brother, so much so it brought tears to the corner of her eyes which she wiped away hurriedly.
They spent the rest of the day chatting and catching up with each other because one thing Claudia wasn't sure of, was the outcome of the war they were about to head into.
At least she got to know her mother.